NEWBERRY COUNTY, S.C. — A South Carolina father has been arrested after being found in Newberry County with an infant in his car who was unresponsive and later died.
According to the Newberry County Sheriff's Office, 911 dispatchers received a call about a domestic dispute in the Prosperity area just after midnight. There, deputies learned that Colie Dawkins of Lyman, the biological father of a six-month-old, child had been allowed to take the child to his home in the Upstate region.
Investigators said that, at some point, however, Dawkins began to "berate the mother" and make threats to harm the child.
After contacting the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) deputies eventually spotted the suspect's vehicle at a convenience store along South Carolina Route 34 near I-26. The first responding deputy said the suspect was in the driver's seat and an infant was unrestrained in a child seat and appeared to be unresponsive.
The sheriff's office said that emergency medical personnel soon responded and attempted to revive the child, who was taken to Newberry County Memorial Hospital. However, the child died.
Dawkins was then arrested on charges of unlawful conduct to a child and violation of the habitual offender act. The SLED Child Fatality Unit is also investigating the death and an autopsy could lead to additional charges against the father.